Would've shot culprits in crime against women if Constitution permitted: Bassi

Virtually reflecting helplessness to ensure stricter punishment to perpetrators of heinous crimes against women, Delhi Police Commissioner B S Bassi today said the force would not be hesitant to shoot or hang such criminals if the Constitution had permitted it.

Speaking on a range of issues at Delhi Police's annual press conference, Bassi who is set to retire next month, also said it was good fortune of Delhiites that the force was under the Centre and not the city government.

Rolling out statistics relating to crime and criminals, Bassi said registration of cases went up by around 24 per cent in 2015 compared to 2014 and that police was doing everything possible to ensure safety and security of the people with particular focus on women and children.

"It will be our pleasure to shoot or hang (the) perpetrators of crime against women if the Constitution of India permits us," said Bassi, who is at helm of Delhi Police since July 2013.

He said, "crime-mapping analysis" of the city suggested that any woman in a locality is surrounded by anything between 250-400 men who would not think twice before assaulting her... They have no respect even for their own mothers and sisters and look at women like they do in a porn movie. They see (even) a two-month-old baby or an 80-year-old woman as targets."

The top cop, who has been having a frosty relationship with the AAP government, said "The people of Delhi are 100 per cent fortunate that the Delhi Police is not under pressure. Neither the Prime Minister nor the Home Minister take interest in Delhi. Only the Delhi Chief Minister does so."

Bassi also announced that 1,000 traffic police personnel will be given guns in view of rising instances of attacks on traffic wing of the force. Currently, traffic policemen are not armed.

Giving statistics, Bassi said as many as 1,82,644 cases under the Indian Penal Code were reported in 2015 as compared to 1,47,237 in the previous year. While cases of murder dropped by 3.91 per cent, rapes and molestation cases increased by 0.48 and 24.15 per cent respectively.

While the highest increase was witnessed in cases of motor vehicle thefts, reported around 40 per cent increase, 16.45 per cent rise was witnessed in robbery and 35.71 in snatching.

"Along with truthful registration comes the onus of prevention and detection of crime and Delhi Police has given an excellent account in this regard. A total of 49,903 IPC cases, including 6,328 heinous cases, have been solved compared to 43,431 cases, including 5,784 heinous cases, in the previous year," the commissioner said. 

"In 2015, we reported cases related to theft of three goats to Rs 20 stolen from a poor man's pocket. This in itself is a satisfactory fact," Bassi said.

Among prominent arrests in 2015 were 101 criminals carrying rewards -- which include gangster Neeraj Bawana, Delhi University fake admission kingpin Himanshu Gupta, and one killed in a police encounter whom the police did not name.

The major arrests also include six terrorists, among them the al Qaeda in the Indian sub-continents' motivation and recruitment head and other associates of the outfit, and as many as 346 drug traffickers, even as total cases registered under the NDPS Act and recovery of hard drugs witnessed substantial drop.

Recovery of fake Indian currency notes witnessed no increase or decrease than the figure in the previous year.

Cases under the Arms act and persons arrested in connection with them dropped to 683 and 791 respectively from 753 and 804 respectively in 2014, records revealed.

Bassi said 70 per cent of the perpetrators in rape cases belong to the age group 21-35 years.

He also said that women need to be trained in self- defence, which can help in tackling the steep rise in instances of crime against women.

"Analysis also suggests that 60-65 per cent of women victims are between 15-30 years old. Their self-defence expertise shall be a sure counter to sick mindset men," Bassi said.

"I have often been criticised for my views on self- defence, mostly by groups who know how to shed crocodile tears," he said.

Police records revealed that 2095 cases of rape, 5192 molestation and 1444 cases of eve-teasing were reported till December 15, 2015, compared to 2085 rapes, 4182 molestation and 1282 eve-teasing cases in the corresponding period previous year.

Records further revealed, almost 39 per cent of the rapes were committed by friends and family members' friends.

While nearly 16.50 per cent rapes were committed by neighbours of the victims and around 14 per cent by relatives, around 2 percent of the offenders were co-workers and 25 per cent cases pertained to other known persons.

While 86.73 per cent of rape cases took place inside houses, 3.29 per cent took place inside "hotels and restaurants". 

Similarly, while 39 per cent of molestation cases were reported to have happened inside houses, closely followed by 39.25 on roads, around 4 per cent cases happened in malls, markets and shopping complexes.

In 1998, 505.71 IPC cases were registered for a population of 1 lakh and the figure went up to 460.75 in 2013, the year in which Bassi took over the reins of the over 80,000 strong force. In 2014, the figure shot up to 881.04, followed by 1054.30 per lakh population in 2015, records revealed.

While cases of robbery witnessed increase, there was a decrease of 8.75 per cent in cases of reported dacoity, with 73 such cases reported till December 15, 2015, as compared to the corresponding period in previous year.

Cases of attempt to murder also went up by 1.21 per cent.

Figures in terms of cases solved by the police also went up in connection with robbery, kidnapping for ransom, rapes, extortion, snatching and molestation.

The year 2015 also witnessed as many as 2259 demonstrations, 4727 dharnas and local strikes, 914 processions and 303 rallies and marches, the records revealed.

Bassi also said that guns will be given to 1,000 traffic officials in the city in view of rising instances of attacks on traffic personnel and for handling of emergencies in the national capital.

He expressed regret over the "slow expansion" of women cab service in the city, and exhorted his younger colleagues to take up the challenge of bringing greater number of woman drivers under the ambit of the empowerment scheme.

The top cop also said that choppers will be used for round-the-year aerial surveillance in the national capital mostly to monitor and regulate traffic during peak hours.